2024 Hyundai Sonata Review and Test Drive

This sharp-looking sedan proves affordable transportation doesn't have to be boring to look at — or shaped like an SUV.

Benjamin Hunting | 

Jun 18, 2024 | 10 min read

Benjamin Hunting

It can feel these days as though automakers are building the few remaining mainstream family cars only out of obligation. The recent announcement of the cancellation of the Chevrolet Malibu sedan indicates that General Motors isn't bothering anymore to pretend an interest in the once-dominant midsize sedan — an attitude similar to other domestic automakers who have dropped sedans from their lineups. This leaves primarily Japanese and Korean brands to provide non-luxury alternatives to SUVs.

Among those diehards, Hyundai can pride itself on doing more than just the bare minimum. The refreshed-for-2024 Sonata is one of the few that makes design a core competency, catching the eye with styling that punches well above the middleweights it competes against. In addition, the latest Sonata adds useful equipment and welcome interior upgrades intended to turn heads away from the utility vehicles that sit alongside it in Hyundai showrooms.

The biggest challenge for the revamped 2024 Sonata, though, isn't putting in peak performance against its few remaining rivals. Instead, it's the uphill battle to get buyers to care about anything that strays from the crossover formula.

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2024 Hyundai Sonata Prices Trend Up but Stay Affordable

The 2024 Hyundai Sonata comes in SEL, N Line, SEL Hybrid, and Limited Hybrid trim levels. Base prices range from the high $20,000s to the high $30,000s, including the destination charge to ship the car from the Asan, South Korea, factory that builds it to your local dealership.

For this Sonata review, I test-drove a Canadian-market Preferred Trend trim level in southern Quebec. In terms of features and equipment, it is the equivalent of the U.S. market's SEL trim with the Convenience package added to the options list. However, there is a wrinkle in the translation: My test car also had optional all-wheel drive, which is offered in the U.S. but not in combination with the Convenience package.

The manufacturer's suggested retail price of the test vehicle came to $31,700, including a $1,150 destination charge. If you forgo the Convenience package and opt for AWD instead, you're looking at $30,150 with the same destination charge. Hyundai provided the vehicle for this Sonata review.

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The 2024 Sonata Cuts a Sharp Profile

Most midsize sedans, in my opinion, lean heavily on anonymity, seemingly determined not to call attention to the fact that they aren't SUVs. The latest Hyundai Sonata goes in the opposite direction, with a sharply styled front end with an EV-like LED light bar, a ducktail, and shredded-star 18-inch wheels (courtesy of the Convenience package). It's a design that's impossible to ignore, even when finished in the understated blue paint on my test vehicle.

With the 2024 Sonata, I feel that Hyundai has stepped up to ensure the interior comes closer to matching the promise of the dramatic exterior. It's an impressive effort, with softer armrests on the doors and center console, metal trim that lines up with interior handle pulls, and angled dashboard slotting for its air vents.

Then there's the curved display that splits into a pair of 12.3-inch screens, one dedicated to the instrumentation and the other housing the infotainment system. Traditional physical controls reside below the center screen and on the steering wheel. To the far left of the display is a padded rectangle, which Hyundai has provided for drivers to pin up reminders, notes, or photographs — an unusual and unexpected design quirk.

The one ergonomic inconvenience I could detect was the new gear-shift lever, transplanted from the console to the steering column. That frees up additional storage space (especially for larger beverages), but the steering wheel blocks it in its new position. I found the twist-to-shift action intuitive, but it was difficult to check gear selection without peering around the wheel.

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The Big Back Seat Is a Welcome Retort to the Sport-Utility Set

The Hyundai Sonata — especially the SEL model — isn't aimed at the luxury crowd, but the Convenience package's charms include a panoramic sunroof that helps to inflate one's impression of the cabin's size. In addition, this package ensures front-seat occupants benefit from heated seats.

The most impressive aspect of the Sonata's interior, however, is its generous rear seat. Although I am not tall, I have a long torso that often makes swooping rooflines a hazard when I'm camped out on the back bench. The Hyundai's headroom, happily, was nearly as notable as its legroom.

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Storage Is Ample in the Sonata

Storage is where some sedans trail SUVs in the practicality department, and the Sonata is no exception. There is 15.6 cubic-feet of cargo room available in the trunk, and while I found this helpful, I know even a smaller crossover would likely offer more space. A 60/40-split rear seat folds forward to accommodate longer items, though.

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The 2024 Hyundai Sonata's Infotainment Screen Is a Win and a Loss

There are two ways to look at the significant screen real estate in the Hyundai Sonata. The first is to appreciate it for its clear and responsive display, its pleasingly retro-look gauges and easy-to-understand cluster menus, the glare-avoidance nature of its curvature, and how it doesn't obstruct the view over the dashboard.

Then there's the other way to look at it. A side of me laments the loss of traditional gauges and the design void that appears when you turn off the vehicle. It's hard to argue that a hunk of black plastic is at all visually appealing, and that's what you get when you extinguish the digital fires that illuminate the infotainment and instrumentation screens.

From a functional perspective, Hyundai has buttressed the 2024 Sonata with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity across the board. I had no issues using the latter, nor was it challenging to pair my phone using Bluetooth, which allowed me to avoid both of the third-party software suites if I chose.

Voice commands for the Sonata operate on a two-tiered basis: A short press of the steering wheel button launches the vehicle's native system, while a long press brings up Android Auto or Apple CarPlay commands. I had a problem with my test car, however, which did not accept any voice commands in the absence of either a CarPlay or Android Auto intermediary.

I contacted a Hyundai representative, and after some investigation, they discovered that the Sonata's Bluelink data connection — the service that Hyundai uses to process voice commands — was not active during the period in which I drove the vehicle. As a result, native controls were not available.

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The 2024 Hyundai Sonata's Highway Driving Assist Is Surprisingly Permissive

All versions of the Hyundai Sonata come with a typical list of active safety features, including forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, lane-centering assist, blind-spot monitoring, and adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability.

My Canadian-market test car added something extra to the SEL trim level in the form of Highway Driving Assist (HDA), a system available only on the N Line and Limited Hybrid trims in the United States. This feature combines all of the above to offer a semi-autonomous driving experience that will steer, brake, and accelerate the Sonata according to the traffic — and obstacles — around it.

I found HDA quite good at keeping the sedan centered in its lane, even in the rain and on curvy secondary roads. But the biggest surprise was how long I could keep my hands off the wheel before the system grew cross with my cross-armed shenanigans.

At highway speeds, I could keep my hands in my lap for 60 seconds or so before the gauge cluster dimmed and a chime sounded to remind me that I needed to hold the steering wheel. In slow, bumper-to-bumper traffic, that period extended to as long as five minutes, depending on the exact speed traveled.

I found it easy to configure the Hyundai's driver's aids. The Sonata's safety systems make use of a graphic that lets you adjust the rate of acceleration and braking from the cruise control, the sensitivity of the forward-collision warning system, and whether you want any of these features on or off.

From a crash-test perspective, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety awarded the 2024 Sonata Top Safety Pick status. Unfortunately, the car earned a Poor rating in an evaluation measuring rear-passenger protection in certain types of frontal-impact crashes. As of publication, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has yet to perform all of its tests on the Sonata.

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Sonata Keeps It Simple Under the Hood

The Sonata SEL features a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that generates 191 horsepower and 181 pound-feet of torque. There are no turbos or electric assists; you'll need to pony up for the N Line or the Hybrid models for either of those experiences (with the N Line adding nearly 100 additional horses).

All-wheel drive is optional for the SEL and new for 2024, while front-wheel drive is standard. An eight-speed automatic transmission handles gear-shifting duties in Sonata SELs, while the N Line gets an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission and the SEL Hybrid and Limited Hybrid get six-speed units.

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Built for the Daily Drive, Not to Make You Feel Alive

The Sonata is not a sports sedan. If that wasn't evident from its on-paper specs, it will be the instant you hit the accelerator and pull out to take advantage of a short passing zone. While the Hyundai's power is adequate at all times, I found no joy in selecting the vehicle's Sport drive mode, and the engine gets raspy the more you ask of it. This car delivers comfortable and reasonably thrifty daily transportation, not agility or antics.

Regarding efficiency, I saw an average of 28 mpg during my time behind the wheel. Including a considerable highway component where the Sonata returned nearly 34 mpg, these numbers were a near-perfect match for its EPA fuel-economy rating of 25/34/28 mpg in city/highway/combined driving with all-wheel drive.

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On the comfort side of things, there's little to complain about once the Hyundai is underway. The car exhibited no uncertainty over rough pavement, never once felt anything less than stable through a corner, and the cabin was calm and quiet when traveling at more than 60 mph. The Sonata simply fades into the background on most trips, fitting for its role as a faithful transportation appliance.

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A Stylish Standout in a Shrinking Field

Hyundai is clearly still devoted to the four-doors-and-trunk concept, and that dedication to staying the sedan course comes through in the details of the 2024 Sonata. After all, there's something to be said for a stylish refrigerator or an eye-catching stove. The 2024 Hyundai Sonata SEL may not deliver any driving frisson to go with its far-out looks, but it does fight back against the visual blanding that afflicts several of the few remaining mainstream midsize sedans.

If you're the kind of person who wants to pivot away from the tall-and-bulky SUV set, the Sonata is a safe bet — and one that's likely a little cheaper at the fuel pump than its tall-riding contemporaries.

Benjamin Hunting

Benjamin Hunting is a writer and podcast host who contributes to a number of newspapers, automotive magazines, and online publications. More than a decade into his career, he enjoys keeping the shiny side up during track days and always has one too many classic vehicle projects partially disassembled in his garage at any given time. Remember, if it's not leaking, it's probably empty.